Matt Damon will headline Chicago performance

Matt Damon will headline a benefit performance of dramatic readings at the Metro, 3730 N. Clark St., on Jan. 31. The Hollywood actor will be joined by the Steppenwolf Theatre's Robert Breuler and Alana Arenas, various local poets and the Tribune's Rick Kogan, among others.

The project, dubbed "The People Speak Live," is based on the documentary "The People Speak" and involves performances of the actual words of various "rebels, dissenters and visionaries" from the American past and present. The producer is a national non-profit called Voices of a People's History, in partnership with the Chicago-based Louder Than a Bomb, a youth-based, spoken-word program. Tickets are now on sale ($11-$24) at metrochicago.com.